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<br />Tourism is of little significance to the town, even though Dinosaur <br />National Park is only 30 miles to the north. The amount of tran- <br />sient lodging available in Rangely is limited to that required for <br />oilfield workers. How'ever, the town is growing. Based on the 1970 <br />Bureau of Census population figure of 1591 and a 1975 community <br />survey, which was conducted by a local high school, Rangely experienced <br />a growth of 12 percent, during those 5 years. Today, Rangely has a <br />population of approximately 1900. <br /> <br />Oil has been the "lifeblood" of the town, but cattle and sheep <br />ranching are also considered important to the economic structure of <br />this rural community. The town is looking forward to new growth <br />from future coal and additional oil developmenb.. Other natural <br />resources in the Rangely area include rare earths, copper, silver, <br />gold, thorium, aluminum, low-grade uranium, and high-grade oil shale <br />(estimated to contain more than 1.5 trillion barrels of oil). Oil <br />shale development holds many possibilities for social and economic <br />growth, and a joint Gulf Oil-Standard oil (Indiana) Company project <br />is planned. A social and economic impact statement for the project <br />has been prepared, and the Gulf oil Real Estate Development Company <br />has been retained to develop a master plan for a community of 25,000. <br />For a community of this size, processing technology permitting an <br />optimum extraction rat,e of 50,000 barrels of oil per day from shale <br />would be anticipated; however, the oil companies have suspended <br />developmental operations until the economic climate is more favorable. <br /> <br />Topography in the Rangely area is extremely diverse, and includes <br />dissected plateaus, sharp ridges, abrupt cliffs, and rugged badlands <br />that are interspersed with open valleys, meadows, and basins. The <br />presence of underlying rock layers with wide differences in resistance <br />to erosion has been the principal factor in the evolution of these <br />varied land forms. Erosion in the rolling shale hills and badlands <br />around Rangely is severe. Deep and extensive gullying along drainage- <br />ways and narrow valleys is of considerable agricultural significance. <br />In many locations, dissection by gullies severely limits use of the <br />land, and bridging gullies increases highway construction costs. <br /> <br />Climate in the Rangely area is classified as semiarid, with rela- <br />tively warm summers and cold winters. The mean annual temperature <br />is 460F, with extremes of -370F and 1060F. The lower valley of the <br />White River near Rangely has a frost-free period with an average <br />length of ~24 days per year. Average annual precipitation varies <br />from 50 inches in the headwater regions of the White River Basin to <br />less than 10 inches at. Rangely. Normally, approximately 40 percent <br />of the annual precipit.ation occurs during the months of August, <br />September, and October. wintertime precipitation occurs as snow, <br />and a deep snowpack usually accumulates in the high elevations. <br />Summer rainfall genera.lly results from convective type thunderstorms. <br />These storms cause short-duration runoff that is characterized by <br />high peak, low-volume flows. <br /> <br />4 <br /> <br />II <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />., <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />" <br />